Feel Bad for September

Fuck September. September sucked ass! But I want to get this blog rolling again, so here's last month's lousy mixtape.

1. Black Pistol Fire - Young Blood
Big Beat '59 (2012)
Submitted By: @mikeorren
Comments: Saw these guys open for The Scabs in Austin a couple months back and thought they were great. Songmanship takes a jump in their new album-- first time I heard this, I swore it was an old favorite.

2. Some Dark Holler - Everybody's Devil
Hollow Chest (2012)
Submitted by: Corey Flegel - This Is American Music

3. Michael Chapman - One Time Thing
Buy: Rainmaker (1969)
Submitted By: Truersound
Comments: Had the joy of meeting the man and seeing him perform at a private party recently. He sat on the porch with an amped acoustic, no vocals....and proceeded to blow us all away.

4. The Moonstones - Miénteme
Fuzz, Farfisa y Fiesta (2011)
Submitted By: BoogieStudio22
Comments: These guys started following me on twitter. I found their Bandcamp site (http://themoonstones.bandcamp.com/) and was floored by their retro 60s sound. Instant fan! About half the songs are in Spanish, the other half in English. I finally found a label in Australia where I could buy their CD (and got a couple of samplers too).

5. Town Hall Brawl - Wanted
demos (2010)
Submitted By: hoosier buddy
Comments: "I remember when called me up, asked me out to the laundromat, playin' pool on the dry cycle, can't have more fun than that. Never told anyone your secret, even though I know you told mine. I could never do that to another; some things should always be protected."

6. Ricky Skaggs & Tony Rice - There's More Pretty Girls Than One
Skaggs & Rice (1980)
Submitted By: @philnorman
Comments: Been doing more duo gigs lately, and there's not many better bluegrass duo records to study than this one. Also, girls are pretty.

7. Sallie Ford & The Sound Outside - Like A Drug
Buy: Dirty Radio (Deluxe Version, 2012)
Submitted By: Bryan Childs (Autopsy IV)
Comments: Ding a ding dang my ding a long ling long.

Also Submitted By: @popa2unes
Comments: I’m Hooked

8. Olivia Tremor Control - Define A Transparent Dream
Music From The Unrealized Film Script Dusk At Cubist Castle (1996)
Submitted By: Ryan (Verbow at Altcountrytab.ca)
Comments: RIP Bill Doss.

9. Chris Knight - Missing You
Little Victories (2012)
Submitted By: Simon
Comments: Not made a bad album Mr Knight and his new one is no exception, best of the plugged in releases so far for me.

10. Sloan - Coax Me
Buy: Twice Removed (1994)
Submitted By: @scratchedsoul
I loved Sloan when they first came out, but then I hated this record when it was originally released in 1994. It's absolutely grown on me over the years. I always loved the line 'I think Consolidated's OK, It's not the band I hate, it's their fans.' That line definitely applied to Consolidated at the time and has applied to many bands since.

11. Guster The Face Buster (G.F.B) - For A Time
G.F.B (2011)
Submitted By: annieTUFF
Comments: Well, is it that time again? September? Already? The start of fall is upon us? We could still go to the lake right now and take a dip during the middle of the hot day, but by the end of the month I bet we'll be wearing sweaters and eating only foods made with pumpkin. Is the pumpkin thing just me? Maybe... Anyway. Back to music. Part of fall is feeling a little bummed, summer is ending, stuff is dying, its starting to get darker in the morning, but you've got to embrace those feelings...and then punch them in the face. So, this month I'm embracing the bummer. Next month I'll continue my fall tradition with the punching my bummer in the face. For now, I'll introduce you to my brother...Guster The Face Buster.

12. Corb Lund - Bible on the Dash (featuring Hayes Carll)
Cabin Fever (2012)
Submitted By: Rockstar Aimz
Comments: Corb Lund and Hayes Carll (and Todd Snider) are among the few songwriters still following the long tradition of using humor in country music. This song is one of the highlights off of Lund’s new album.

13. Sex Pistols - New York
Never Mind The Bollocks (1976)
Submitted By: Bowood
Comments: this popped up on my iPod, the whole album is just a middle finger to everyone and everything.

14. Wallpaper - Best Song Everrr
Ultimix 181 (2011)
Submitted By: tincanman
Comments: I'm jush wanna say I love you FB...FMB...shit...FBFUCKY peoples. Yesh, I've had a few brwskiiiiiiiiiis ha haha, but thatsh not it. No, I shwear, I just love you. all. Video is the NSFW version: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pr7pEzgW_7Y

15. Matt Sweeney & Bonnie "Prince" Billy - Storms (Fleetwood Mac cover)
Buy: Just Tell Me That You Want Me - Tribute To Fleetwood Mac (2012)
Submitted By: TheSecondSingle/Beldo
Comments: My love for soft rock is no secret to those on ACT. This earnest, stripped down cover by one of my favorite duos brings out the beauty and songwriting perfection that has made so much of Fleetwood Mac's material age so well (and shine through the admittedly dated production). Now if Matt and Will would make a follow-up to Superwolf...

16. Jason and The Scorchers - If Money Talks
Rockpalast - Hamburg Germany (1985)
Submitted By: toomuchcountry
Comments: I couldn't let the recent passing of Scorchers' drummer Perry Baggs slip by without some sort of trib. Two songs written by Baggs - White Lies and If Money Talks - were also two of the most iconic for the band and were staples in their setlists. R.I.P. Perry.

17. Elliott Randall - Take The Fall
Take the Fall (2007)
Submitted By: Cowbelle www.morecowbelle.net
Comments: New favorite SF Americana artist

18. Bon Iver - Calgary
Live at Triple J Studios (2012)
Submitted By: Slowcoustic
Comments: I know the crowd around here doesn't always give the time of day to Mr. Vernon but I thought I would be the softie who provided a Bon Iver track to FBFY. I like this version of Calgary as it is one where Bon Vernon uses his actual speaking voice to sing and leaves a lot of the 'signature' falsetto-style singing out of the equation. And I live in Calgary...so, there is that.

19. Chris Bell - I Am The Cosmos (removed by request)
Buy: I Am the Cosmos (1992)
Submitted By: Trailer
Comments: If you don't like this song, I probably don't like you (much).

Concert Review: Lucero at Lee's Palace, October 20, Toronto

More photos by Steffen at Turn It Up Or Turn it Off.

There has been a lot of hoopla among Lucero fans such as myself over the new album 1372 Overton Park about Lucero's use of horns on much of the album. My first impression was that lead singer/songwriter Ben Nichols has been spending way too much time with Craig Finn and The Hold Steady, but after several listens the album has really grown on me and I would say its just about as good as anything that Lucero has done. It sounded even better at Lee's Palace in Toronto on Tuesday, October 20.

I was standing to the left of the stage, mostly out of the range of the asshole 19-year-olds who somewhere along the line decided that Lucero was a mosh band. Not that I didn't have to go home and shower and do laundry to clean all of the sprayed beer off of me. Seriously dudes, its a waste of alcohol. I mean, I know you saved your allowance for months to piss it away on spraying beer and everything, but you are angering people and keeping real fans away from the show. This only hurts the band in the long run. Hell, at one point Nichols even said, "Dudes, this ain't the Warped Tour." Here's a song for you punks - note the lyrics: "Its not the band I hate, its their fans." Now go to a Fucked Up show.

Sloan - Coax Me.mp3
Buy: Twice Removed (2005)

But ANYWAY, Lucero sounded fan-fucking-tastic. From where I was standing, the two saxes were slightly more muted than on the record, and, to me, it sounded like how 1372 Overton Park should have been mixed. The "horn section" was actually two dudes who switched between baritone, tenor, and alto saxophones.

And how bad-ass is bassist John C. Stubblefield, aka "John C." The dude was wearing a Merle Haggard T-shirt with the sleeves cut off. He was doing crowd safety when the shit-head punks got out of control. He handed out shots of whiskey to the purdy ladies in the crowd (apparently I'm ugly). And he lit up cigarettes in the smoke-free venue. The only other person I've seen do that is Mike Cooley of the Drive-By Truckers.

Speaking of the DBT, this was another one of those shows where the dudes in the audience seriously outnumbered the chicks. During "Goodbye Again" there was some serious bro-mance going on. And damn, I thought some of them were going to start making out with each other during Nichols solo section, not that there is anything wrong with that. When taking requests Nichols mentioned that he was "partial to the slow, sad shit." And damn didn't he nail them. "Mom" from the new album was especially amazing.

Lucero played for two full hours. Nichols maybe took a 30 second break before bringing the band back out for an encore. Including the two opening acts, I saw over three and a half hours of music. I certainly got my $20 worth of entertainment. And at least $20 worth of beer sprayed on me.

Set List
(full band with saxes)
1. Sounds of the City - 1372 Overton Park (2009)
2. That Much Further West - That Much Further West (2004)
3. Can't Feel a Thing - 1372 Overton Park
4. The Devil and Maggie Chascarillo - 1372 Overton Park
5. Nights Like These - Tennessee (2002)
6. What Else Would You Have Me Be? - Rebels, Rogues, and Sworn Brothers (2006)
7. Joining the Army - That Much Further West
8. Last Night in Town - Nobody's Darlings (2004)
9. Sixes and Sevens - 1372 Overton Park
10. Goodbye Again - 1372 Overton Park
(saxes leave)
11. Kiss the Bottle - The Attic Tapes (Jawbreaker cover, 2006)
12. I'll Just Fall - Tennessee
13. Chain Link Fence - Tennessee
14. Slow Dancing - Tennessee
15. Sixteen - Nobody's Darlings
16. Hey Darlin' Do You Gamble - 1372 Overton Park
17. Wandering Star - Lucero (2001)
18. Johnny Davis - 1372 Overton Park
(Ben Nichols on guitar, plus dudes on pedal steel and keyboards)
19. The Last Pale Light in the West - The Last Pale Light in the West (Nichol's solo, 2009)
20. Mom - 1372 Overton Park
21. The War - Nobody's Darlings
(full band with saxes)
22. Smoke - 1372 Overton Park
23. Darken My Door - 1372 Overton Park
24. I Can Get Us Out of Here - Rebels, Rogues, and Sworn Brothers
25. Nobody's Darlings - Nobody's Darlings
26. Tears Don't Matter Much - That Much Further West
(Encore)
27. Other Side of Lonesome - recorded for 1372 Overton Park but not included
28. All Sewn Up - Lucero
29. Fist Full of Tears - Tennessee

Tears Don't Matter Much.mp3
Buy: That Much Further West (2004)

The Last Pale Light in the West.mp3
Buy: The Last Pale Light In The West (2009)

Hey Darlin' Do You Gamble.mp3
Buy: 1372 Overton Park (2009)


Cedric Burnside and Lightnin' Malcolm opened the show with a forty minute set of blues rock. I was highly entertained by these two fellows, and wow, can they make a lot of music for just two dudes. Burnside wailed on the drums while Malcolm cranked on the guitar. So good! Check these two out if you like hard rockin' blues.

So Much Love.mp3
Buy: 2 Man Wrecking Crew (2009)


Amy LaVere followed with a set of upright bass blues rock. While she didn't have the energy or the stage presence of Burnside and Malcolm (her drummer looked completely bored), she still put on a decent set. I actually liked their sound more when her guitarist sang lead.

Killing Him.mp3
Buy: Anchors & Anvils (2007)

Canadian Music Week

Happy Canada Music Week! The conference/festival for all things in Canadian music, or something. I have to admit that I am not down with what the cool kids are listening to, and that I do not know a lot of the artists that are playing this week. If you want a more comprehensive coverage of CMW, check out Chromewaves.

Tonight one of the stalwarts of Canadian music takes the stage. Many people my age remember first hearing about Sloan as a Halifax bar band in the early 90s. Ten studio albums later, they remain one of the top bands in Canada, and one of the best power pop bands anywhere. They are probably going on stage right about now at the Mod Club.

I Hate My Generation.mp3
From: Twice Removed (1994)
Discontinued

Losing California.mp3
Buy: Between the Bridges (1999)
US: discontinued; Canada: Maple Music

If It Feels Good Do It.mp3
Buy: Pretty Together (2001)
US: discontinued; Canada: Maple Music

I'm Not a Kid Anymore.mp3
Buy: Parallel Play (2008)
US: Amazon.com; Canada: Maple Music